If you’ve been hearing or reading a lot about blockchain but you still aren’t entirely certain how to define it, you’re not alone. It’s something that Jack Dorsey, the chief executive officer and chairman of Square (and CEO of Twitter), describes as the “next big unlock,” something that, he notes, is normally applied to accounting terms but has the potential to “be applied to so much more.”

In an interview earlier this week at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, I had the chance to ask Dorsey about Square’s business, the future of banking, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, and more.

Blockchain is often defined as a ledger that enables secure, encrypted transactions. Some financial and technical experts have described it as analogous to the early days of the internet: it’s a framework or backbone for transactions, while the various use cases for it are analogous to apps on the internet as we know them today.

But Dorsey also went beyond that interpretation of it, adding that the capability to “distribute and decentralize the ledger enables proof of work, and proof of one entity, in an untrusted network.” Even if there’s a hostile entity or a mistrust in the network, Dorsey said, “we can still account for value creation and the transfer of values as well.”

“There are so many problems we can help solve [with blockchain] that are not just related to finance, but finance is an evident one,” he added.

However, the availability of blockchain technology doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone should hop on the blockchain bandwagon. “I think there are going to be a bunch of people who say, ‘Blockchain, let’s go apply it everywhere’ and ‘Let’s attempt to solve every single problem with it,’” Dorsey said, “in the same way that we attempt to solve every problem with machine learning and data science and deep learning and artificial intelligence. And I think we need to be more thoughtful. What are people fighting with? How does the technology help them progress or does it divert them?”

Dorsey also spoke about bitcoin, which Square has accepted as a form of payment since the fall of 2014. Dorsey also admitted he has personally invested in Bitcoin, tho’ he didn’t share how many bitcoins he holds.

He said one of the most surprising things he’s experienced recently is when friends and family, who aren’t as close to the technology industry, have been asking about bitcoin — specifically, how to invest in the cryptocurrency.

“I’m from St. Louis, Missouri, and I have a lot of friends and family who are not into technology,” Dorsey said. “Over the holidays, one of the things I kept getting asked by people I know is, ‘You work in technology, you work in finance, how do I buy bitcoin?’ I asked, ‘Why do you want to buy bitcoin?’ And they said, ‘Well I heard it’s a prompt effortless way to make money. someone said it’s like digital gold.’”

Dorsey went on to discuss the benefits of — and potential problems with — investing in a digital asset that is decentralized, deflationary, and in general, unlike any other traditional stock market securities. The utter movie is below. It’s a long discussion, but it’s a uncommon in-depth conversation with an entrepreneur who has rigidly established himself as a disruptor in more than one industry.

Observe Square CEO Jack Dorsey in Conversation with The Verge’s Senior Technology Editor Lauren Goode. He’s talking about why he commenced the digital payments company, his treatment to innovation in financial services and his vision for the future of commerce. Please submit your questions during the live program in the comments below. #CHMLive

If you’ve been hearing or reading a lot about blockchain but you still aren’t entirely certain how to define it, you’re not alone. It’s something that Jack Dorsey, the chief executive officer and chairman of Square (and CEO of Twitter), describes as the “next big unlock,” something that, he notes, is normally applied to accounting terms but has the potential to “be applied to so much more.”

In an interview earlier this week at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, I had the chance to ask Dorsey about Square’s business, the future of banking, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, and more.

Blockchain is often defined as a ledger that enables secure, encrypted transactions. Some financial and technical experts have described it as analogous to the early days of the internet: it’s a framework or backbone for transactions, while the various use cases for it are analogous to apps on the internet as we know them today.

But Dorsey also went beyond that interpretation of it, adding that the capability to “distribute and decentralize the ledger enables proof of work, and proof of one entity, in an untrusted network.” Even if there’s a hostile entity or a mistrust in the network, Dorsey said, “we can still account for value creation and the transfer of values as well.”

“There are so many problems we can help solve [with blockchain] that are not just related to finance, but finance is an demonstrable one,” he added.

However, the availability of blockchain technology doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone should hop on the blockchain bandwagon. “I think there are going to be a bunch of people who say, ‘Blockchain, let’s go apply it everywhere’ and ‘Let’s attempt to solve every single problem with it,’” Dorsey said, “in the same way that we attempt to solve every problem with machine learning and data science and deep learning and artificial intelligence. And I think we need to be more thoughtful. What are people fighting with? How does the technology help them progress or does it divert them?”

Dorsey also spoke about bitcoin, which Square has accepted as a form of payment since the fall of 2014. Dorsey also admitted he has personally invested in Bitcoin, tho’ he didn’t share how many bitcoins he holds.

He said one of the most surprising things he’s experienced recently is when friends and family, who aren’t as close to the technology industry, have been asking about bitcoin — specifically, how to invest in the cryptocurrency.

“I’m from St. Louis, Missouri, and I have a lot of friends and family who are not into technology,” Dorsey said. “Over the holidays, one of the things I kept getting asked by people I know is, ‘You work in technology, you work in finance, how do I buy bitcoin?’ I asked, ‘Why do you want to buy bitcoin?’ And they said, ‘Well I heard it’s a quick effortless way to make money. someone said it’s like digital gold.’”

Dorsey went on to discuss the benefits of — and potential problems with — investing in a digital asset that is decentralized, deflationary, and in general, unlike any other traditional stock market securities. The total movie is below. It’s a long discussion, but it’s a uncommon in-depth conversation with an entrepreneur who has stiffly established himself as a disruptor in more than one industry.

Observe Square CEO Jack Dorsey in Conversation with The Verge’s Senior Technology Editor Lauren Goode. He’s talking about why he embarked the digital payments company, his treatment to innovation in financial services and his vision for the future of commerce. Please submit your questions during the live program in the comments below. #CHMLive

If you’ve been hearing or reading a lot about blockchain but you still aren’t entirely certain how to define it, you’re not alone. It’s something that Jack Dorsey, the chief executive officer and chairman of Square (and CEO of Twitter), describes as the “next big unlock,” something that, he notes, is normally applied to accounting terms but has the potential to “be applied to so much more.”

In an interview earlier this week at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California, I had the chance to ask Dorsey about Square’s business, the future of banking, cryptocurrencies, blockchain, and more.

Blockchain is often defined as a ledger that enables secure, encrypted transactions. Some financial and technical experts have described it as analogous to the early days of the internet: it’s a framework or backbone for transactions, while the various use cases for it are analogous to apps on the internet as we know them today.

But Dorsey also went beyond that interpretation of it, adding that the capability to “distribute and decentralize the ledger enables proof of work, and proof of one entity, in an untrusted network.” Even if there’s a hostile entity or a mistrust in the network, Dorsey said, “we can still account for value creation and the transfer of values as well.”

“There are so many problems we can help solve [with blockchain] that are not just related to finance, but finance is an demonstrable one,” he added.

However, the availability of blockchain technology doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone should leap on the blockchain bandwagon. “I think there are going to be a bunch of people who say, ‘Blockchain, let’s go apply it everywhere’ and ‘Let’s attempt to solve every single problem with it,’” Dorsey said, “in the same way that we attempt to solve every problem with machine learning and data science and deep learning and artificial intelligence. And I think we need to be more thoughtful. What are people fighting with? How does the technology help them progress or does it divert them?”

Dorsey also spoke about bitcoin, which Square has accepted as a form of payment since the fall of 2014. Dorsey also admitted he has personally invested in Bitcoin, however he didn’t share how many bitcoins he holds.

He said one of the most surprising things he’s experienced recently is when friends and family, who aren’t as close to the technology industry, have been asking about bitcoin — specifically, how to invest in the cryptocurrency.

“I’m from St. Louis, Missouri, and I have a lot of friends and family who are not into technology,” Dorsey said. “Over the holidays, one of the things I kept getting asked by people I know is, ‘You work in technology, you work in finance, how do I buy bitcoin?’ I asked, ‘Why do you want to buy bitcoin?’ And they said, ‘Well I heard it’s a rapid effortless way to make money. someone said it’s like digital gold.’”

Dorsey went on to discuss the benefits of — and potential problems with — investing in a digital asset that is decentralized, deflationary, and in general, unlike any other traditional stock market securities. The total movie is below. It’s a long discussion, but it’s a infrequent in-depth conversation with an entrepreneur who has tightly established himself as a disruptor in more than one industry.

Observe Square CEO Jack Dorsey in Conversation with The Verge’s Senior Technology Editor Lauren Goode. He’s talking about why he began the digital payments company, his treatment to innovation in financial services and his vision for the future of commerce. Please submit your questions during the live program in the comments below. #CHMLive

Posted by Computer History Museum on Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Related video:

Tags:

Related Posts

The 1% don’t use Bitcoin Exchanges Given that the Brexit is still fresh in our minds — the big question of “how will the global financial elite diversify their assets” is one that every money manager and their clients are discussing this weekend. Fine timing for a Bitcoin post! I sent a tweet out earlier […]

Russia Launches $100 Million Bitcoin-Mining Operation In what some have called a “watershed” moment for bitcoin, Bloomberg reports that a company co-owned by an aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking to expand Russia’s bitcoin-mining industry, leveraging Russia's cheap energy to rival China as the world’s largest mining market.